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I seem to be doing a lot of these bike lists lately. A lot of people don’t know where to look or where to start looking sometimes for a bike. From seeing my Cheap Mountain Bikes That Get The Job Done Right post spinmethin asked me to do a road bike version of that post. I really like doing product reviews or compilations like this so if you want to see something in particular from me you can just leave the information in my Suggestions Box! page. These bikes will be what I consider to be the best money spent on a road bike. The people that will most benefit from these bikes are starting cyclists or cyclist who are happy with where they are at and don’t want to spend a ridiculous amount on something they won’t even use. Without further ado let’s begin the list.

Raleigh Revenio 2.0

I am not sure why, but the more and more I look at Raleigh the more I like them. They have a very nice selection of bikes for people who don’t want to pay an arm and leg for a bike. The Revenio series has a pretty broad selection; the price depends on the components and such. The Revenio 2.0 is the one I chose simply because it is not too expensive and all you need to get into road riding. The frame is butted aluminum alloy but the fork is carbon composite with chromoly. The shifter and derailleurs are Shimano Sora; so a lower end Shimano but a step up from the 2300. Just as a side note I have heard that these are very nice shifters the only problem is that you can’t access the down shifting from the drop bars; this is just because of the placement. The cassette is a 9 speed with 12-25 teeth. The crank is a FSA Vero compact with 34/50 teeth. The tires that come with the bike are 700 x 23. I personally think the overall look of the bike is just great it has red shifter lines giving the stark black body a great contrast. For the in-depth spec sheet and fitting chart click here. The price tag comes in at $899.

Felt Z95

Felt is yet another great bike producer. They do not have as much of a selection of inexpensive bikes just because of course they spend most of the time concentrating on the high-end bikes. Th Z95 is a cool looking bike for sure all black and white. The shifters and front derailleur of this bike are very low-end Microshift, but the rear derailler is Shimano Tiagra. The Tiagra is a step above the Sora and since, for me at least, most of my shifting is on the cassette this may be worth it to you to give up quality of your front derailleur. The shifters can also be accessed from the drop bars unlike the Shimano Sora. The frame is butted aluminum while the fork is carbon fiber. The crankset is FSA tempo compact so not quite up to par with Raleigh but I doubt you would notice the difference. It has 50/34 teeth. The cassette itself is a has 10 speeds and a range of 11-28 teeth. That is a broader range than the Raleigh for sure. The tires that come with this bike are 700 x 25 which I have heard are really better tires for safety. They will however be slower, whether you notice or not is depending on how avid of a rider you are. In depth specifications here. The price for this bad boy is $899.

Trek 1.1

I am actually not very enthused with Trek’s choices of lower end bikes. This is the bottom line that they have but I find anything with more class is too expensive. I have to include Trek into the list because it is a huge name in cycling and if you are a fan I can’t very well skip over them. The 1.1 is a great bike don’t get me wrong. The reviews say even though it is an aluminum frame and fork it is a much smoother ride than other aluminum frames. That has mostly to do with the geometry. The shifters and derailleurs are Shimano 2300 so the lowest end of the Shimano spectrum. The crankset is Vuelta Corsa compact with 50/34 teeth. While the cassette has 8 speeds ranging from 12-25 teeth. The tires on these are 700 x 25 like the Felt counter part. For in-depth specs visit here. The bill for the Trek 1.1 is $729.99

Of course as usually I can’t cover all the brands and all the bikes that I think should be on this list. These are just a few of the ones that I liked. Remember for the most part you get what you pay for. You just need to know what you want out of you bike to get the best bike for yourself. I will be making a post pretty quickly on how to do just that. Some people don’t know what they want especially if they are a beginner cyclist. Of these three bikes I must say that the Felt Z95 is my favorite. It is not the best bike but it fits what I would want most out of a bike of that caliber. As always I hope you enjoyed and benefited from this post. If you would like to see a post just for you all you have to do is ASK! Or you can just leave a comment, thanks!